Time is what we want most, but what we use worst. ~ William Penn
In just over two weeks, I will receive the ultimate gift, the gift of time. March 9th 2012 is my last day working in my 9-5, five-day a week job, with its associated four-hour a day commute. As a result I will suddenly find myself with an extra 12 hours a day. That’s an extra 60 hours a week that were previously filled with work and commuting that are now mine to do with as I please.
Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it. ~ M. Scott Peck
When I think about my round the world trip, which starts on March 28th, this new abundance of time is one of the things that excites me the most. Over the course of a working year, it adds up to an extra 2,700 hours or 112 extra days to do with as I please. When I think about all of this extra time, my mind starts to race with how I will spend it. Here’s just a few of the things that I’m currently craving more time to do:
- Yoga
- Meditation
- Reading
- Writing
- Creating
- Sleeping
Even if I did an hour of these things a day I would still have 6 hours extra left to play with, not to mention the amount of spare time a day I already had. Initially I imagine that those extra 6 hours will be filled with sight-seeing but I also envisage spending a significant proportion of my time creating resources to both give away and sell here at Life is Limitless.
Lost time is never found again. ~ Benjamin Franklin
Realising that 50% of my time each day from Monday to Friday has been tied up with my work and commute has made me think long and hard about the importance of time and the value that I place upon it. I read recently that if you work from the age of 19 until 65 and you work a standard eight-hour per day job, excluding weekends, taking four weeks of holiday per year, you will spend around 127 months (or 29,007 days, or 696,162 hours) of your life working.
Considering these figures, isn’t it vital that what you do during these hours is something that is both enjoyable and fulfilling for you? I grew up believing that loving your job was something extremely rare and that we could only hope for but I’m now of the opinion that life is too precious to waste it doing work that I don’t enjoy.
Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you. ~ Carl Sandburg
Because I know that leaving your job is easier said than done, I will be sharing more details with you in future posts about how my journey from full-time paid employment to self-employment is progressing, but for now I just wanted to share with you the new-found appreciation I have for my precious time in the hope that it inspires you to re-evaluate how you spend yours.
How much of your life do you spend doing things that you don’t enjoy? If you could take this time back what would you spend it doing instead? Have you thought about quitting your job to do something more fulfilling but haven’t because of fear? Please let me know in the comments, I would love to hear from you and if you’ve enjoyed the post please share it by hitting one of the buttons below.
Hi there, I'm Caroline. Welcome to Life is Limitless, my blog about personal development with a focus on facing fears and living a life without limits. Check out my about page to find out more and pop your email in the box below to subscribe for regular updates.
I hope you make the most out of all that time. Looking forward to hearing about it.
It’s so funny how many people you hear say, I don’t have time but yet they keep doing things that big wastes of time. It takes a lot to STOP doing those things usually because they’re habits that you’re use to doing (ie coming home and planting yourself on the couch in front of the tv).
But once you have a focus, once you have a clear goal. Those time sucks start to become what they are. Distractions that are keeping you from achieving your goals.
Good luck Caroline.
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Greg, I couldn’t agree more! I hear people using the I haven’t got time excuse far too often. I think getting real about what you spend your time on is really important and it’s means that hopefully we then prioritise what’s really important to us. I also agree that having a clear goal works wonders for getting me focused. Thanks so much for sharing!
I would love an extra 60 hours a week. That’s great you’ll have all that time free time!
I know you’ll get so much more done. I know you’re not going to waste that extra time.
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Hi Benny! Yes let’s hope I don’t, I look forward to being able to dedicate some real time to creating, thanks for the comment
I continue to be impressed by your thoughtful and dedicated posts. I think about how much time I waste often. I’m NOT working at the moment, and yet the vast oceans of time I have on my hands often seem daunting. I feel as though I should be filling every second to the brim! I’m also obviously looking for work, but sometimes I feel like I’m looking for a job out of guilt for wanting to contribute and earn money, obligation more than doing something useful and helpful and something I love, or that will better myself. Things to think about! And reading your posts always help, thanks. I’m excited for you and your journeys, and look forward to hearing about them! All the best to you.
Chrissy thanks so much for your lovely comment. It’s great to get your perspective on this and hear the idea that an abundance of time can be daunting, I can imagine feeling a similar way. I often produce my best work when I am up again strict deadlines and without the structure of a 9-5 job I can imagine this will be something I have to work on. Thanks for the heads up and good luck in all your endeavours
Congratulations on your upcoming freedom!
I quit my 9-5 two years ago to move to Brazil and become an English teacher and translator. (Actually, I still maintain 8-10 hours a week freelance for that company, but it’s on my own schedule and terms).
It’s been a bit of a mixed bag – on the one hand, I love the freedom and flexibility, but on the other hand, I haven’t been able to get completely where I want to be financially. Although my job is fulfilling, the stress of wondering if we’ll be able to pay rent every month is taking a significant toll, and I can’t say that the joy of the job completely makes up for it.
So I’m in the process of reorganizing my work situation again to optimize my time, do what I love, AND not have to worry about money!
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Thanks for your comment Shayna, it’s good to hear about the both sides. I have saved some money to sustain me for a while but will definitely start feeling those financial pressures at some point in the future. In life, I believe all the best things come with some sacrifices and I guess the uncertainty around finance will be one such sacrifice for me, it’s great to hear you have a plan up your sleeve though! Good luck with it
Congratulations on your new adventure! I promise you, it will be an interesting time indeed. Although 60 hours feels expansive, you’ll be amazed at how quickly those hours fill themselves and you’ll soon wonder how you ever worked at a job.
Looking forward to hearing more about your journey.
Hi Andrea, I have no doubt that you are right. Time is funny like that and I’m sure that as I start to do things that I truly love, time will fly even more quickly! Thanks so much for your comment
Your list of things to do sounds perfect – I have exactly the same list myself! How wonderful it will be to embrace that freedom and live to your own schedule. I am so excited to see what lies ahead for you Caroline, and have no doubt that whatever it is, it will be wonderful
Thanks Hannah, I am really excited and I would definitely say the same about your future. I look forward to staying in touch on the road!